Inner insulating and finish wall for fabricated structures



G. COSTIS Nov. 10,- 1959 2,912,076 INNER INSULATING AND FINISH WALL FORFABRICATED STRUCTURES Filed July 14, 1953 2 Sheets-Sheet. 2

' Fla? M14/@inw ATTORNEY l Le),

United States Patent() INNER INSULATING AND FINISH WALL FOR FABRICATEDSTRUCTURES George Costis, Schenectady, N.Y., assignor of fifty percentto James W. Fitzsimmons, East Rockaway, N.Y., James P. Houlihan,Schenectady, N.Y., and Robert C. Sullivan, Washington, D.C.

Application July 14, 1953, `Serial No. 367,898

2 Claims. (Cl. 189-34) This invention relates to fabricated structuresand more particularly to a new and improved arrangement for insulatingand finishing the interior of the same.

While this invention relates to any building having an I-beam typesupporting structure, the followingdescription is directed particularlyto the well known Quonset Hut type building. It is to be understood,however, that such an example is not intended as a limitation on thescope of this invention; but rather has it been selected merely as anexample to point out more clearly the operating principles and featuresof the invention.

In alconventional Quonset Hut construction, a plurality of semicircularor arcuate I-beams (I-shaped cross section) are placed alongside oneanother in a predetermined spaced parallel relationship. The I-beamsform the skeleton or supporting structure for the Quonset Hut .and metalplates are then welded, riveted or otherwise secured to the I-beams toform a scale-like weatherproof structure.

In still other typical j .Quonset Hut constructions, prefabricatedpanels are formed so that their longitudinal axis takes the form of apredetermined are, while the cross section of the panel resembles tosome extent the letter C. That is to say, at either end of a four-footwide panel, a rst lip is formed perpendicular to the plane of the paneland a second lip is bent to underlie the panel in parallel spacedrelation.

When a pair of panels is then juxtapositioned, the proximate lips ofadjacent panels form a supporting beam which, in cross section and atthe edge removed from the panel, resembles the I-shaped beam.

In either construction, however, it is important to note that the innersurface ofthe Quonset Hut has a plurality of equally spaced-apartI-shaped supporting members.

With such a structure, it has always been a problem to attach an innerinsulating and finish wall. That is, in the past, complicatedarrangements have been provided wherein skilled labor is necessary tobolt or otherwise fasten batten strips to the inner face of the l-beams,so that insulating panels can be attached to the hatten strips.Obviously, this is an expensive installation.

It is an object of my invention, however, to provide a new and improvedarrangement for securing an inner insulating and finishing wall to theinner surface of a Quonset Hut.

It is a further object of my invention to provide a new and improvedinner insulating and finish wall for a Quonset Hut that can be installedwithout the beneii-t of skilled labor.

It is a still further object of my invention to provide a new andimproved lining for a Quonset Hut that can be installed without the helpof any tools.

Further objects and advantages of this invention will become apparentand will be better understood by reference to the following descriptionand the accompanying drawings, and the features of novelty whichcharacterize this invention will be pointed out with particu- ICClarityvin the claims annexed to and forming part of the specification.

Briey, this invention relates to an inner wall for a Quonset Hut whichis made up of a plurality of prefabricated and interiitting parts whichinterlock withthe I-beams and with each other to form a substantial,attractive and easily assembled inner insulating and finishing wall.

In the drawings, Y

Fig. l is a perspective view of the I-beam skeleton for one type ofQuonset Hut structure;

Fig. 2 is a front elevation of a portion of theiinished Quonset Hutinner wall;

Fig. 3 is an end view, partly in section, taken along plane 3--3 of Fig.2 in the direction of the arrows;

Fig. 4 is a top. view, partly in section, taken along plane 4--4 of Fig.2 in the direction of the arrows;

Fig. 5 is a top view, partly in section, taken along Vplane 5 5 of Fig.2 in the direction of the arrows;

Fig` 6 is a perspective view including a cross section of a base member;

Fig. 7 is a perspective view including a cross section of a medianmember; and

Fig. 8 is a perspective view including a cross section of an uprightmember.

Referring now to the drawings, a Quonset Hut skeleton 1 is showncomprising a plurality of semjcircular I-beams 2 arranged in parallelspaced-apart alignment. The I-beams (see Fig. 4) have inner lips 3, 4with the distance between the lips 3 and 4 of adjacent I-beams being apredetermined fixed spaced-apartrdistance. f

An inner wall 5 is then attached to the I-beams by assembling aplurality of intertting base members 6, median members 7, uprightmembers 8 and panels 9 in a manner that hereinafter will be described.

Referring now to Fig. 2, a pair of I-beams 2 is shown positioned inspaced-apart parallel relationship Vwith a lip 3 and a lip 4 ofeach.I-beam facing one another.

It is believed that a short statement at this time concerning a completeinstallation will place the relative importance of the inner wallmembers in proper perspective and, accordingly, simplify theunderstanding of the structure and function of each member.

In assembling the inner wall, and with particular reference to the spacebetween a pair of adjacent I-beams, a base member 6 is first secured toadjacent I-beams; a lower edge 10 of panel '9 is then fitted into thebase member 6; a median member 7 is then fitted over the upper edge 11of panel 9 and also secured to the adja. cent I-beams; then anotherpanel 9; then another median member 7, etc., until the complete innerspace between the adjacent I-beams has been filled. Then, where theopposite ends of the I-beams reach the floor, a vsecond base member issecured to a panel and to the adjacent I-bearns.

It will be understood that this operation` will then be duplicatedbetween the next adjacent pair of I-beams until the entire inner wallhas been covered. s

With particular reference now to one of the base Lmembers 6 as shown inFig. 6, it is to be understood that while the member could be made witha solid crosssection, for example of wood or plastic, in a preferredembodiment it is made of folded sheet metal,` such as aluminum or steel.Specifically, a sheetmetal strip is folded to provide an outer face 12,a bottom13, an inner face 14, a supporting groove 15, and astrengthening, joining `band 16, wherein the adjacent ends of the'stripare rolled together to make a rigid rib-like brace.

At each end of the base member 6, a notch 17 is cut in the bottom 15a ofthe support groove 15, and a corresponding notch 18 is cut in the bottom13. The notches have a width and depth which is determined by 3 the sizeof the lips 3, 4 of the I-beams 2. That is, with the construction shownin Fig. 6, the walls of notches 17 and 18 are shown encompassing the lip4 (shown in phantom) of I-beam- 2. Since the structure is identical ateach end of the base member, it can be appreciated that by tilting basemember 6 away from theV horizontal, notches 17, 18 at one end can behooked onto a lip 4 of one .I-beam 2, while similar notches at theopposite end of the base member 6 can be hooked onto the lip 3 of theadjacent I-beam 2. Then, by settling base member 6 to the horizontal, itwill be rigidly secured between a pair of adjacent I-beams. It isobvious that on the outer side of the notch, the sheet metal strip (Le.portions of outer face I2 and joining band 16) must be cut away tocompensate for the thickness ofweb 19 of I- beam 2. So too is the notchcut slightly deeper than the corresponding dimensions of the I-beam lipsto provide some clearance and facilitate assembly.

Referring now to Fig. 4 of the drawing, a pair of base members 6a and 6bare shown attached to anV I-beam 2. The base members are contoured tomeet at the center of webA 19 of I-beam 2. Accordingly, it will beunderstood that the overall length of the base members is determined bythe center distance between adjacent I-beams. In a typical case, thisoverall length is four feet.

The dimensions of panel groove 15 naturally are determined by the typeof panel 9 that is to be used. There are many panelsr now commerciallyproduced which are ideal for inside walls of Quonset Huts. The panelscombine both insulating qualities and a finish appearance. Typicalpanels are oblong in shape and are one-half inch thick, four feet longand have some suitable width, e.g. three or four feet. With such apanel, groove 15 would have a width equal to one-half inch plus thethickness of lips 3, 4 of I-beam 2 and plus the thickness of uprightmember 8.

With this structure, the lower edge 10 of a panel 9 is inserted intogroove 15, while the panel ends 20, 21 (Fig. 4) overlie the lips 3, 4,respectively, of the I-beams andmeet approximately at the center line ofweb 19.

A median member 7 is then set on top of panel 9 to engage its upper edge11 (Fig. 2 and Fig. 3) and to hold it in contact with I-beam 2.

The median members 7, like base members 6', could be made of a solidmaterial, but in a preferred embodiment, they are made of sheet metal,for example, aluminum or steel. Each median member (Fig. 7) comprises aninner moulding element 22, a lower panel groove 23, upper panel groove24, outer element 25, and strengthening rib 26 joining the adjacent endsof the sheet metal strip. The ribs 26 and 16 may be either crimped orspot welded to add the desired rigidity to median member 7 and basemember 6, respectively.

The inner moulding element 2 is shaped in accordance with good design,but preferably it has a width that would permit formations of panelgrooves 23, 24 of at least one-half inch depth. The grooves 23, 24,incidentally, have a width equal to that of base member groove 15 sothat a panel plus a lip 3, 4 of I-beam 2 and the thickness of uprightmember 8 can be accommodated.

A slot 27, similar to slots 17, 18, is formed at each end of medianmember 7 in the wall 28 separating the grooves 23, 24. The purpose ofslot 27 is to encompass and grip complementary lips 3, 4 of adjacent I-beams 2.

The inner moulding member 22 has a length equal to that of the innerface 14 of base members 6, the length of which, to reiterate, isdetermined by the center distances of the I-bearns 2.

A median member 7 is installed similarly to base member 6. That is, itis first tilted from the horizontal, and slot 27 is locked onto a lip 4of one I-beam 2. The opposite slot is then locked onto lip 3 of anadjacent I- beam, whereupon the median member is settled to thehorizontal so that lower panel groove 23 engages upper edge 11 of panel9. With panel 9 thus supported between grooves 15 and 23 of thev basemembers 6 and median member 7, a rigid substantial structure ispresented which will hold the panel in an inner wall-forming position.

It has been mentionedth'at tlie next step is to install another panel,and thenv another median member, etc. until the entire inner wall h'asbeen covered. It is obvious that with the construction of the panels andmedian members as described', it becomes a simple matter to line theQuonset Hut by intertting and interlocking the panels, base and medianmembers with the lips 3', 4 of the I-beams. It is also apparent that theinterfitting is a simple matter and that it is completely unnecessary touse any kind of skilled labor or tools for such an installation.

In Fig. Y8, an upright member 8 is shown. The sole function of member 8is to hide the joint between the contiguous ends 20, 21 of adjacentpanels. Upright member 8 is not structurally necessary, but it does addto the aesthetic appearance of the inner wall, and for that reason, isuseful. The upright members 8 are plain strips of spring-like sheetmetal having a length effectively equal to the width of panel 9. Theends 29, 30 of each strip are inserted between a paneland a contiguouswall of a groove holding the panel. Then, by pushing on the midpoint ofthe strip, the two ends 29, 30 are slid into place and the strip 8,because of its resilient properties, will lie closely adjacent thepanels 9.

While particular embodiments of this invention have been illustrated anddescribed, it will be obvious to those skilled in the art that variouschanges and modifications may be made without departing from theinvention, and it is intended in the appended claims to cover all suchchanges and modifications that come within the true spirit and scope ofthe invention.

What I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the UnitedStates is:

l. In a fabricated structure having parallel spacedapart supportelements with each support element having an inner lip extending towarda facing lip on the next adjacent support element, a wall sheathing theinner surface of the structure defined by said support elementscomprising a plurality of base members, panel members and medianmembers, said base members having slots in each end thereof engagedrespectively with adjacent facing lips of said support elements to holdsaid base members against said lips, each of said base members furtherhaving a groove in one edge thereof engaging a corresponding edge of oneofsaid panel members along the entire length thereof, said medianmembers having slots in the ends thereof engaged respectively withadjacent acing lips of said support elements to hold said median membersagainst said lips, said median members further having grooves along theentire lengths of their upper and lower edges engaged respectively withcorresponding edges of one of said panel members along the entirelengths thereof, and said panel members having a thickness commensuratewith the grooves in said base and median members whereby said basemembers and said median members respectively are engaged simultaneouslywith said panel members and said support elements.

2. In a fabricated structure having parallel spacedapart supportelements with each support element having an inner lip extending towarda facing lip' on the next adjacent support element, a wall sheathing theinner surface of the structure defined by said support elementscomprising a plurality of median members and panel members of uniformlength equal to the center spacing of said support elements, said medianmembers having slots in the ends thereof engaged respectively withadjacent facing lips of said support elements to hold said medianmembers against said lips, saidl median members furih?? having' groovesalong the entireleng'ths of their if safe 5 upper and lower edgesengaged respectively with corresponding edges of oneof said panelmembers along the entire lengths thereof, and said panel membershaving athickness commensurate with the grooves in said median members wherebysaid members can interlock with one another in alternate sequence andwhereby said median members are simultaneously engaged with the lips ofsaid support elements to hold said wall against the inner surfaces offsaid support elements.

References Cited in the le ofl this patent Doud Apr. 2l, 1936v CowinNov. 2l, 1944

